Athletics

New Coach in Town

MDCA has introduced Darnell Harrison as the Head Track and Field coach for the 2021 season. Coach Harrison brings with him a wealth of experience over his 20+ year high school coaching career, coming to us from Lake Mary High School where he has coached track and field and football for the past four seasons. During his time at Lake Mary High School, the track and field team won back-to-back district and regional championships. Prior to being at LMHS, Coach Harrison earned his bachelor’s degree in Criminal Justice from Western Illinois University where he also played WR/DB for the Leathernecks football team. Outside of working with high school athletes, Harrison is a certified personal trainer and has trained professional athletes including NFL Wide Receiver, Brandon Marshall. Coach Harrison also built the track and field program at Lake Mary Prep from the ground up, earning three district and regional championships and five individual state championships.

Junior, Jerianne (Tootie) Todd, placed second in the bowling Junior Gold Qualifiers in October. This gives her the opportunity to compete in the Junior Gold Championship this summer. Her love of bowling began at a young age. “Bowling is something that I have been around since I was a little girl. I spent most of my evenings playing in the game room or sitting on the floor playing while my dad and papa bowled in their leagues. The summer of 8th grade I decided to give bowling a chance, and I began to practice hours at a time. From the help of many people, I became very trained, and developed a love for the sport. My freshman year I joined a youth league on the weekends and joined the MDCA bowling team. This is when I knew that bowling was my home,” she said.

Tootie has a long list of friends and family that support her bowling career. “My mom is always there to love me, and my dad, a bowler himself, is always there to encourage me and help me when I’m struggling. My Papa Glenn, also a bowler, is such a big fan of mine. He is always watching me and critiquing me on how I could improve. No matter how bad I may be doing, he is always there to lift me up and hug me when I’m in need. The moment I met Coach Z, she became my other mom. Not many people really understand the love I have for bowling, but right from the beginning I knew that she would always support me and my bowling career. Lastly, one of my number one fans is my best friend Hailie. She is definitely hard on me at times, but I know it’s because she wants me to be the best I could possibly be. I have so many supporters that were not named, and I’m so thankful for each and every one of them.”

MDCA’s Athletic Director Megan Ziegelhofer says, “Coach Harrison is a quality person who shares our

commitment to fostering growth through Christ and continuing to build our track and field program in all facets. His passion and enthusiasm for athletics is contagious, and he will without a doubt motivate, inspire, and challenge our student-athletes. MDCA is

blessed to have Coach Harrison as part of our family”.

Bowling Her Way to the Championship

Tootie will be competing against thousands of national bowlers in the Junior Gold Championship in Indianapolis this summer. “It will definitely be one of the hardest challenges I will ever face, but I’m always up for a chance to learn and grow. I will prepare for this championship by training and working on my technique. I have a lot of room to improve before the championship, and I will not take the time I have to prepare for granted. I’m so excited for this experience, and I can’t wait to see how far I will go!”

The championship will take place in July 2021 and will be a nationally televised tournament.

Sports Highlights

The Girls Cross Country team was named District Champions and placed 7th in the Regional meet.

The Competitive Cheer team placed 4th at FCC nationals in Orlando.

On January 11th, Coach Hayes earned his 400th win! Junior, Emily Allen placed 6th in the State weightlifting championship.

Senior Rodney Bryant scored his 1,000th point at MDCA.

The Girls Varsity Volleyball team was named the District 2A Volleyball Champions!

The Varsity football team won the second round of playoffs, and then played in the SSAC 2020 Class AAA State Championship game against OCP.

The Boys Cross Country team was named District Runner-Ups, placed 3rd at Regionals, and then placed 5th out of 31 teams at the State Championship! Riley Novack placed 5th, and Mitchell Curtis placed 7th.